Chapter six
He dressed in his customary red armor. I was about to ask him about one for me, when he surprised me by motioning to something of a closet. I pulled back the curtain to see that he had another spare one that he was willing to let me borrow. It was way too big and I had no idea how I was going to fit into something that would probably make a second home.
As I stepped into the boots, they closed in around me and the rest the armor followed suit, until it was snug against my frame. My breasts were well defined and I looked like a superhero like cat woman or maybe even spider woman. It was skintight, but very breathable. I would have thought that I would be sweating under the heat of the sun, but I felt very cool and had no problem maneuvering.
There was a part of me that believed that this armor was alive, but I saw no semblance of a sentient being. It was docile and the material was something that would make somebody very rich back in my world. It was like spandex, but had the feel of steel. I punched it and it actually twanged like a piece of metal.
“I don’t think that anybody has looked any better in a suit of armor. If we’re going to do this, then we should be getting on our way.” We walked out and went over to mount Rankin, but he was nowhere to be seen. “I don’t get it.”
“Maybe we weren’t the only ones that got lucky last night. Perhaps he found another Dragos and is now smoking out of his nose with contentment.” He had shown me where the edge of the forest was and if we really wanted to make it there without Rankin, then we were going to have to make a run for it. It wasn’t too far away, but still far enough that running at a full clip would take at least 10 minutes. “Don’t worry about him and I’m sure that he’ll be back when we come back with our hands risen in triumph.” I thought that his behavior last night was due to the presence of my benefactor, but that didn’t explain this.
“I hope you’re right. I just get this funny feeling that something more is going on here than meets the eye.” Instead of dwelling on something that he couldn’t change, we began to make the trek. He stopped and showed me a shortcut that would cut our time down by at least 5 minutes. I followed him, because if we were to come up against anything like that snakelike thing that I had seen when I first got here, then I would want him to be front and center.
One finger on each of his hands had now turned into this electrical energy whip. He was using it to cut through the trees and the underbrush. It was making the path well worn and I could tell from the footprints that it hadn’t been used in some time. We actually did come across a couple of those snakelike things and he cut them to ribbons and continued to move at a pace that was making it very hard for me to keep up. I wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of losing me, so I pressed on and made myself hit the wall and go through it.
“I hope you’re OK back there, Shana. We’re almost there.” There was no need to say anything and besides I was getting a little winded and had no extra oxygen to speak. “Unfortunately, when we get there, I don’t think that we’re going to have time for a breather. If we do, it’s going to be a very short one, before having to go on the hunt.
“I don’t know what happened and when I got up this morning, Jasper was not outside waiting for me like he always is.”
“I know what you mean and Oliver was not where he was supposed to be. It took me a moment to track him down, but I could swear that he was trying to hide from me” I heard the voices of two men talking and they had the same experience as we did with Rankin.
When we came out of the underbrush, we were accosted by two guards, who escorted us over to where Lord Vadam was talking privately with his squire. He looked frustrated and then he turned at the sound of footsteps to give us this warning with his eyes that was not exactly subtle.
“We have been waiting patiently for your arrival. If you’re through with making us wait, then we will get on with this.” There was a contingent of people and they were standing in a circle and waiting for Lord Vadam to begin the second phase of competition. “I think we all know the rules. You go in there, you capture an Offus and you bring it back to me. Once you do that and you are one of the first six to do that, then you will be able to move on to the next round. The one that does it first will get an advantage. Believe me; you want this advantage going into the next competition.” He turned towards the squire with the bald head and glowing green eyes.
Out of nowhere, his mouth opened and that same horn that I had heard this morning came out of his mouth. It was a little jarring and made me take a step back in complete shock and wonder that something like that could actually be happening.
Even though I was taken aback, Braden was the one that pulled me out of it by grabbing my hand and forcing me into the trees with the rest of the competitors.
It was time for the hunt of the Offus and only six would emerge, while the other six would be eliminated from the competition. I just hoped that one of those that were eliminated was not myself or Braden. I think that we were the only ones that were going to work together and that might give us an advantage.
“I think I should tell you one other thing about this hunt that you probably don’t know about. Shana, it’s an unwritten rule that competitors can fight each other during the hunt. What that means is that those that are out here with us can hurt us to prevent us from accomplishing the goal.” This was the first that I had heard of it. I had no weapons and as far as I could tell, it was only the men that had the capability of changing one or several of their fingers into those tendrils of electrical whips. I’d not seen a woman do that, but there was nothing to say that they couldn’t.
“It’s nice to know that and I wish that you told me that long before now.” I think I understood the reason why he didn’t. He didn’t want to worry me, until it was absolutely necessary. He wanted me to have that moment of reprieve. I wanted to slug him for keeping this information to himself. He knew that I was not from around here, so I really didn’t know the unwritten rule.
“I thought that it is best that I wait. I’m sorry that you think that I was trying to keep something from you. To be completely honest, I really didn’t think much of it, until this morning. I realized that you wouldn’t know. It made sense when I thought about it. You weren’t showing any kind of nervousness by the very idea that somebody would want to kill you out here in the middle of nowhere. I thought that you were just being brave, but then I knew that you had no idea.”
“I think that I can tell you something that you don’t know, Braden. When we came in here, there were only 11 of us. It was supposed to be 12. What exactly happened to that last man?” I think that he was a little bit perplexed and he was now looking me like he wanted know how I could possibly know that. “I’m very aware of my surroundings. I think women are able to see things that men are unable to. I can’t say the same thing for the women on this world, but on mine we have a knack for picking up little details.” He shrugged his shoulders and apparently he had no idea what had happened to the other guy.
“I think that we should take that as an omen. With one out of the way, we don’t have to worry about competing with 11 others. 10 are still more than enough, but at least with one out of the way, we can concentrate on the task at hand.” I thought I heard something and my eyes were drawn to a shadow that was moving amongst the trees. There was no information to determine what happens to the Offus when it goes into hiding. “I’m going to try to flush one out. Shana, if you see it, then act quickly, because it won’t be there long.” They were big enough, but their speed was like a cheetah in the African plains.
I had the bow and arrow and we were given five each to use on this leg of the competition. If we used anymore, we would be immediately disqualified. Braden took out what looked like a small bell and then he began to ring it, while doing some kind of call that sounded like a sick bird. He then rushed into where the shadow had come from. I saw out of my peripheral vision something moving. On instinct alone, I fired, only to hear a grimace, which was followed by a man in armor stumbling forward and falling at my feet. He was injured and he was looking at me with surprise in his eyes.
“You really shouldn’t have gotten in my way. That’s gonna hurt. That may not kill you, but it will hurt your reputation. You’ll never be able to look at your fellow competitors the same way again. I’m going to do you a favor and let you decide on what you want to tell people of how you got that injury. We’ll know the truth, but at least that will allow you to save face and continue on in the competition without ridicule.” I don’t even know why I was giving him any kind of compassion.
“Thank…you.” It did my heart proud knowing that I had given him something that others probably wouldn’t. He crawled away and I allowed him to live, where others would have probably killed him for his weakness.
I heard scuffling and thought for sure that I was going to turn and find an Offus staring me down. Instead, I found a man in armor. It was black, but on further inspection, I realized that it wasn’t a man at all. The form was more hour glass. As she came forward, a smaller tendril of energy appeared on her right finger. She slashed it back and forth in front of her, essentially cutting through branches and making them fall to her feet.
“I thought that I was the only woman in this competition.”
“Lord Vadam thought it might be a good idea that I join. I’ve taken the place of one of the other competitors. He told me in confidence that if a woman was to win this, then he would rather it be me than you.” I didn’t know why she was anything special, except for the fact that she was wearing black armor. That could only mean that she was handpicked by Lord Vadam himself.
“I guess I can understand that. I suppose you are going to try to kill me.” She was nodding her head. “I hope you know that I’m not going to go down easy.”
“I was hoping that you would say that. I like somebody that fights back. There used to be a man in my life that was a sniveling coward. I couldn’t stand to be around someone like that. It was only after I met Lord Vadam that I realized that I didn’t have to live with somebody that had no courage.” She was slashing that tendril back and forth and getting ever closer with each step that she was making. She was no more than a few feet away.
“I don’t know why you don’t just join forces with me. We could become the first females to ever walk out of here with an Offus each. We’ll give women a chance to see strength that comes from a girl, instead of from a guy.” I was giving her a way to work with me than against me. I was hoping that she was going to grab onto it with both hands.
“It is tempting. I’m not going to say that it isn’t. You’ve obviously made quite an impact, although nobody really knows that much about you. It is rumored that you come from the other side of Markham. That seems unlikely, but your claim can neither be verified nor discredited. I’m sorry to say that my duty is clear. Lord Vadam wants your meddling to stop and I’m here to do exactly that.” She was determined and there was no talking her out of this course of action. Her mind was set and even though she probably admired my fire to stand up to Lord Vadam, it didn’t matter in the end.
She raised her hand and she snapped that tendril back behind her. She was preparing to snap it forward and cut me in half, when I pulled an arrow and leveled it on her. We were at a stalemate. If she were to attack, I would fire the arrow at the same time and hopefully take her life, along with my own. I think I knew in the back my mind that it was never going to work. It was the only thing that I had at my disposal. Unfortunately, that meant that I was going to have to work with what I had and hope for the best
“It doesn’t have to be this way. There is room for two women.” It was my last ditch effort to make her see reason, but I knew that I was fighting a losing battle. She obviously had the ear of Lord Vadam and whatever hold he had on her was strong enough that it was allowing him to have her do his bidding. Instead of standing up to me himself, as a man, he had decided that killing me by a woman’s hand was the answer. I’d never believed that taking a life was any kind of answer. I don’t think that this woman felt the same way.
“I’m afraid that can’t happen. Lord Vadam has asked me to do this for him and I feel it is my duty to give him what he wants. He is the only one that understands me.” She started to move that tendril towards me and I had this feeling that my arrow was not going to be of any use against what she was now attacking me with.
I’d seen those whips in action and they were more powerful than any of the arrows that I had currently in my quiver. I saw my life flash before my eyes and I think I knew that my time was up.